The Queen of Disasters
by FelicityPendragon
Summary: Eliza Queen has been on the run from the ministry for five years, since she was eleven, charged with the murder of her parents. When she is caught, she is offered a choice: go to school at Hogwarts as a sixth year or spend her life in Azkaban. Please Read and Review!
1. Captured

Chapter 1 – Captured

Eliza looked up from her small camp fire in the middle of New Forest in Hampshire at the sound of cracking twigs underfoot. She waved her hand at the fire and it immediately went out and with another hand wave, the smoke and heat dissipated. She got up from her perch on the wet and muddy ground, ignoring the mud stains on her already worn jeans and went closer to the sounds which seemed to be moving closer. Keeping behind trees and in the shadows created by the setting sun, she crept silently away from her campsite and she could just make out the movement of men through the woods and she immediately recognised them as aurors despite their muggle clothing, mainly from the wands but also as they were in the middle of the forest with no camping equipment.

Determining that there was only the two of them with no dementors, she decided that she could risk a quick trip back to camp before making a run for it. She had never managed to master the way that the wizards managed to appear and disappear but she imagined that the skill required training and not some sixteen year old girl who had never even owned a wand. She kept an eye on the two men as long as she could before they went out of sight. She waved her hand once more and found that nothing happened. She sighed and concentrated harder and waved her hand once more towards her tent which packed itself up and placed itself in her black backpack. She rubbed her foot across the fire that had taken her ages to build up and, making sure she hadn't missed anything that could be a clue; she began making her way through the woods in the opposite direction to the two aurors and desperately hoped that they hadn't split up or changed direction.

Half an hour later, Eliza slowed down, happy that she must have outrun the men and allowed herself a break as her feet were beginning to ache and she needed to figure out how the men had found her so she could avoid it happening again. The aurors and dementors had been becoming a less frequent occurrence as she grew older and came to understand how they tracked her. When she had been young, she had stolen from muggle shops frequently for food and water but she realised that a day after each of these trips, someone would turn up, ready to take her to the ministry. So she had worked out what water was safe to drink from the land and stole food to last for longer but she had begun to kill rabbits for food as the attacks from the ministry became harsher like the one time that she had been captured. A group of seven wizards had caught her which was where she was told about the ministry and Azkaban and the dementors, she had only been thirteen but she vowed to never get sent to that place. She had escaped with some major injuries and that was when she had learnt how to do stitches and had begun to experiment with healing magic although she later concluded that this was dangerous without a wand.

Suddenly there was a crack of twigs and the rustle of leaves being pushes aside and Eliza looked up, searching for the commotion, hoping beyond hope that it was just a deer. There was a flash of red and a pain in her chest before she collapsed on the ground, covered in mud. A second later, she was up and running, leaving behind her bag which was closer to the auror who had emerged from the cover of the trees. The other auror came from the other side and she had to dodge another shot of red, weaving behind larger trees in the hope of their vision or shots being obstructed. She was hit by a glancing blow to her shoulder but she shook it off and kept moving. Getting caught was not an option. She pushed her body to run faster, not caring about the racket she was making anymore, but her lungs and legs were burning and she was moving slower and slower. Suddenly one of the aurors appeared in front of her and shot red straight at her and she collapsed against a tree, dark spots beginning to dance in her vision. The other auror came to stand by the first one and they kept their wands pointed straight at her heart.

Careful not to move too fast and get stunned again, Eliza sat up, using the tree to support her small frame. She lifted her green eyes up to study the two men. She looked at the first one that had stunned her. He had jet black hair, was of average height and had glasses and the other had a shock of greying red hair and had a slightly larger build as though he enjoyed his cake a bit too much. She studied their stances and knew that now would not be a time to try and escape but it would have to be done before reaching the ministry or Azkaban as she knew that there was no escaping from there. Steadily, she raised herself to standing and looked at the aurors expectantly, wondering what they would say and do next. Preferably something stupid that would allow her an easy escape when she was so tired. The dark haired one glanced at his colleague as if confirming before looking back at Eliza who stood stock still.

'My name is Harry Potter and this is my colleague Ron Weasley.' The dark haired one said. Eliza considered the names and knew that she recognised them but couldn't quite place them; her wizarding knowledge was sketchy at the best of times. Instead of voicing this, she simply nodded lightly, urging him to continue. 'We are aurors at the Ministry of Magic, as I think you knew and we have come to arrest you on the charges of the murders of Mary and Steven Queen, the assault of seven aurors and of evading the law for the past five years.' Eliza nodded again, fully aware of what she had done, although assault seemed slightly strong to her when concerning the aurors as they did happen to give her some nasty cuts in her attempt to escape (not intentionally but she was still angry about it).

Potter and Weasley looked at each other again before moving slowly towards the young girl that they had not expected to see. They had been told that they were looking for a murder that had been on the run for five years. Ron had even taken time off from helping at Weasley's Wizard Wheezes to help him capture the girl. However, they had not expected to see a girl who looked no more than sixteen or seventeen with muddy clothes that were too small, tangled hair and a small frame that showed the edges of her bones clearly. How the girl could have killed when she was only eleven was beyond Harry. They saw her flinch as they took hold of her arms and led her back through the woods towards their campsite, not wanting to apparate as they had been advised that she had be splinched badly with the last set of aurors.

Eliza made sure to track their steps through the woods so that she knew where to go when she made her escape so that she would be able to get back to her bag before going a different way. The two aurors with her seemed to be uncomfortable with her age which Eliza knew she could use to her advantage as they were likely to underestimate her powers, especially as she didn't carry a wand which wizards seemed to think meant you couldn't perform magic. How wrong they were. How they couldn't remember the things they did before that school of theirs was beyond her, all she had done was develop those skills until she could use them to her will. Eventually, they came to their camp which consisted of one very small tent but Eliza could sense the extension charm, another skill she had come to develop – a detection of magic in order to help her avoid capture. There was a fire that was better built than hers had ever been and not much else, just a rucksack flung on the floor that looked to be filled with food.

A thought popped in Eliza's mind just as she was planning to run away when they set her down on the floor by the tent; she needed to know how they had found her otherwise she would be caught again and not just by two wizards. Contemplating her options, she decided that direct was the way to get the best information.

'How did you find me?' Eliza asked, raising her voice to carry to the aurors. Ron started a little but they both turned to her with impassive faces.

'We know not to tell you that, Miss Queen.' Potter said sternly but with a hint of kindness. 'You have become wise to most of our tricks over the years and we can't risk you escaping again with more knowledge than before.' Eliza silently cursed her luck, how had she come to be captured by wizards with actual common sense?

'Not that you will be escaping this time, we leave for the ministry as soon as we have eaten and packed away.' Weasley added making sure the girl knew that she was not going to get away this time. She had taken too much time and resources to be allowed to leave before her trial at the ministry. Potter nodded behind him and waved his wand at the tent but not before bringing out a couple of blankets which he placed over the muddy ground. The tent collapsed and Potter shoved it into the backpack and came back to the fire with some bread rolls and two cans of tomato soup. Weasley heated the soup over the fire and Potter went over to Eliza who had watched the scene unfolding, looking for escape exits despite Weasley's warning.

'You know,' Potter said. 'Things may not turn out as bad as you seem to think that they will.' He said it softly as if to a scared deer he didn't want to scare off but Eliza only became more suspicious of the pair as Potter walked over to help Weasley with the food. Despite this, she had a nagging feeling at the back of her mind that told her to trust these two men but she couldn't bring herself to do it. Not after the last time. The men had captured her and had treated her splinches (which they had caused) but despite this kindness, she was kept locked up by dementors. They had been so close to her and she had no defences whilst they hid behind their silver animals. She was still plagued by nightmares of those creatures, which was why she had vowed to never be sent to Azkaban, no matter the cost.

'Miss Queen, come and eat. You may not get a chance for a while with everything that will happen when we return.' Weasley said. It was then that the name clicked, as she stared at the red hair, the famous red hair. These two had been involved in some war with a dark wizard. She now felt the last shreds of hope she had drain away. They would not be beaten by a girl with no magical training when they had beaten someone with so much more power than her, and a wand. She really needed to get her hands on one of those.

Reluctantly, she got up from her place on the floor and walked on stiff legs over to the fire, placing herself as far from them as possible in the small space. Weasley handed her a bowl with tomato soup and a chunk of bread.

'I thought you were working in a joke shop.' Eliza said, startling the aurors. Her voice was soft and slightly melodic without sounding too girlish. Harry saw that, even though she didn't trust them, she wolfed down the food as if she was starved. He looked over to her and thought that maybe she was, her frame was small and the clothes hid the worst but he could see the juts that the bones made against her skin. He felt sorry for the girl once again, he couldn't bring himself to see her as somebody who would harm another person.

'I was. I am. I am just helping out with you before I go back. How did you know that?' Ron replied.

'Just for me? How special I feel.' Eliza said before continuing. 'I recognise you from a few of the newspapers I picked up in wizarding villages. They do seem to like you a lot. Although, not as much as your sons, the first one especially seems to cause rather a fuss.' She directed her last statement to Harry who merely smiled.

'Yes. James does enjoy causing trouble. However, this is not what I had intended to discuss with you. I want to know what you have done to warrant such as search. I know only the charges, no circumstances or reasons. If you tell us then we may be able to help you.' Eliza considered the words carefully. She had never told anyone what had happened that night but she knew that these two held sway within the ministry and she knew them to be trustworthy. However, she hated thinking about that night. She decided that if she was to tell this story, she wold want something in return.

'I will tell you my story on two conditions. The first is that you must promise that I will not be taken near any dementors and the second is that you must tell me how you found me.' They didn't seem to like her terms but they each gave a nod after looking at each other for a moment, having a silent conversation that she could only guess at.

'As you know, I am charged with killing my parents, Mary and Steven Queen. It was the night that I received my Hogwarts letter, they had been so proud that morning but they came home after work and something had changed. They didn't seem to see me anymore, their eyes were glassed over and were unfocused and yet they came straight towards me. My father pushed me to the ground and kicked me over and over again but that was nothing compared to my mother,' Eliza paused to take a breath, her voice remaining emotionless as she told the story. 'She took a knife from the kitchen and sliced it down my back. It was horrific, the pain, like fire burning through me and I screamed but they didn't stop. She came at me again but I couldn't bear the thought of that pain again and I screamed. I screamed and they were pushed back against the wall as my magic burst out of me. It killed them, my magic. I felt anger and I let it loose and it killed them.' Eliza let out a breath quietly and looked down at the ground in embarrassment. She couldn't believe that she had just told her greatest secret to two people that she had never met on a hunch that they were trustworthy.

'Eliza.' Harry said. His voice held concern and pity but it didn't conceal the fear. Eliza could sense their wariness at her confession that in her anger, she had killed people with her magic. Magic that she still had not fully learnt to control. 'We are sorry for everything you have been through. We had no idea that you had no control over your actions and that they were purely as self defence against people who were likely under the imperious curse.'

'You asked two things.' Ron said, taking over the conversation. 'We promise that the dementors will not come near you and I will tell you how we found you.' Eliza looked up expectantly, watching his face and body language so as to determine if he told the truth with his next words. 'You used to be easy to catch when you used magic to steal from muggle stores, in the same way we can detect underage wizards when they use magic. You became aware of this and used magic less and less and you found ways to use it that we could not detect, spells you felt safe using. We asked some of our brightest people to figure out a way of detecting your instinctual magic as we call it. Yesterday, we finally created a spell that could detect magic within a person, without them having to use it and we could then trace your movements.'

Eliza nodded, glad that is had not been something that she had done herself but she was annoyed that she would no longer be able to evade capture, even if she somehow managed to escape the two aurors. Ron took the bowl that was now empty and said a spell so that it cleaned itself before he placed it with the others in their bag which must have some form of charm on it as it didn't look big enough for even one bowl.

'Now, Eliza.' Potter said. 'Are you ready to go to the ministry?'


	2. The Ministry

Chapter 2

Eliza braced herself against a large marble pillar in the centre of the hall they had landed in. The apparating had caused her to feel sick but at least she hadn't been splinched that time due to careful instructions from Potter. Once she had her bearings back, she stood up and looked around in awe at the splendour of the ministry; the high ceilings, the marble floors, the paper aeroplanes that flew around over people's heads like birds and the sheer number of people. For a moment, Eliza thought how easy it would be to slip away from the two aurors by her side but she thought better of it. They had promised her safety from dementors and she still felt herself trusting them despite their capture of her. She hoped that maybe they would help her avoid the inevitable, no matter how obscure that chance was.

'Eliza.' Weasley said, breaking her out of her own thoughts. 'Follow us. It is easy to get lost in a place as large as this.'

Eliza followed closely behind Weasley as Potter fell into step behind her, ensuring that she wouldn't try to escape into the crowds of people. Harry knew just how easy it was to go unnoticed in a place like this, even if you were as famous as he was. They walked over to the lifts as the side of the room, passing hundreds of people, all running off to different departments or over to the fire places that glowed green with each person that stepped into it. Eliza didn't have time to be awed by the fact that people were stepping into green fires and not dying but disappearing as Potter pushed her lightly into a waiting lift. Several of the paper aeroplanes flew in above their heads as the lift doors were pulled closed by a middle aged witch in green robes with dark hair and a kind face.

The woman glanced over at Eliza's face and smiled knowledgably. 'Is this your first time at the ministry then, dear?' She asked, her voice as kind as her face. Eliza didn't know how to answer. It was her first time but she wasn't visiting like the witch thought, she was here charged with murder.

'Yes, it is.' She said truthfully, not knowing what else to say.

'Sorry, dear, this is my stop.' The witch said, getting off the lift followed by about half the aeroplanes however another load came in followed by about seven other witches and wizards.

The rode the lift in silence until Potter and Weasley pulled open the doors and stepped out, pulling her along by the arm. They passed many desks with people working but Eliza didn't bother trying to get her bearings. All she knew was that she was on level two which was below where they had started in the hallway which she assumed was not the main entrance as there had been no doors to the outside.

'Where are we going?' She finally asked.

'The Auror Office first as I need you to fill out some paper work before your hearing which will be only a short walk.' Potter said. Eliza wondered what paperwork she would need to fill out. Did criminals usually have to sit down and fill out data sheets or was it different for her?

Eventually they arrived at a door that said 'Head Auror – Harry Potter', which Potter opened and led both her and Weasley through.

The office was very large and full of haphazardly piled folders and paper was strewn across a large desk and Eliza thought she could make out a half-eaten sandwich underneath a piece of paper to do with an escaped prisoner. Before Eliza could think about how someone could escape from Azkaban, Potter sat her down at a smaller table in the corner of a room, handing her a quill and a sheet which had a load of boxes for her to fill in.

'Just fill this out and then you will be ready to go to the hearing.' Potter said before going over to join Weasley who had made himself comfortable at Potter's desk.

Eliza looked down at the paper in front of her and started with the first few questions. The first two were her name which was easy enough but she had to think for a second before she could remember her date of birth. It had been a long time since she had celebrated it. She wrote down 28th November 2005 and then moved onto the next few which all asked about her address which she ignored, all she would be able to put was: lives in the occasional forest/ alleyway. The next questions she struggled with as they concerned her family and contacts, she put the names of her parents but couldn't put anything for other family or contacts for as far as she knew, she had none.

When she was finished, she went over to Potter who took the sheet and placed it with the others that he had collected off the mess that was his desk and then he placed them all in a red folder and he gestured for her to follow him out of the room and down the hallway, towards her hearing. They passed more people who were working at desks, all with quills in their hands, furiously writing something that Eliza couldn't quite see as she was marched past.

They arrived outside a large black door with a silver round door handle which Potter turned and pushed the door inwards to reveal a huge room which was surrounded by elevated seating, most of them taken up by witches and wizards in black and red robes. Potter led her to a hard chair that sat in the middle of the room, facing a tall man with dark skin and an odd taste in clothes, even for a wizard. Potter and Weasley left her in the middle of the room as they made their way up into the stands to sit to the left of the strangely dressed man who seemed to be in charge of the proceedings.

'My name is Kingsley Shacklebolt, Minister of Magic. Are you Eliza Queen?' The man asked. Eliza nodded in confirmation of his question and waited for him to continue.

'You stand charged with the murders of Mary and Steven Queen, the assault of seven ministry aurors and evading the law for the past five years. The sentence for these crimes would usually be life imprisonment in Azkaban however I have been informed of some new information that may affect this outcome. Mr Potter, Mr Weasley?'

Potter stood up and addressed the assembly of witches and wizards. 'We have come to understand that the circumstances of the deaths were out of defence against two people under the imperious curse, most likely by a death eater angry for her parents support during the war. We also feel that her assault of the aurors was also in self-defence as she was being exposed to dementors and had reason to distrust us after the splinching incident.' Potter took a deep breath before continuing. 'I believe that under these circumstances, Ms Queen should be allowed the chance at a normal life within our community with the aid of the ministry and should be given the chance to learn to control her powers which were also partly to blame for the unfortunate incident.'

'Thank you, Mr Potter. I have a few questions for Ms Queen before we pass judgement.' The minister turned to face Eliza. 'Is what Mr Potter says true? Did you indeed attack your parents out of self-defence?' Eliza felt uncomfortable under his gaze and did not want to reveal her story to yet more people. She glanced over to Potter and Weasley who both nodded in encouragement and she steeled herself to tell the horrific story once again.

'Yes. They attacked me and I reacted but it was not intentional. I was scared and my magic just burst out of me and killed them.' Eliza said, keeping to the bare facts and maintaining an emotionless voice. Just as Potter and Weasley had done, the minister looked shocked and slightly scared at her admission of how her magic had defended her. Harry looked down over at the minister at the same time and he knew how he felt. It was not normal for children to have such power and to have it manifest so strongly was cause for concern. If the girl didn't learn to control her magic then she could easily kill other people as she grew older and her magic grew stronger.

'And the attack on the aurors? Was that also unintentional?' Shacklebolt asked. Eliza hadn't even told this story to Potter and Weasley and it was hard but she knew that if she could tell how she had killed her parents, then she could tell this one as well.

'No. They kept me in a tent by myself with dementors with no ability to shield myself. I was scared and I didn't want to be there anymore. I didn't trust them. I used my magic to get past the dementors and ran. They came after me but I knew that I would be put back in that tent and I couldn't bear it so I let out a blast of magic and left.' Eliza let out a breath and relaxed back into her hard chair, relieved to get her secrets off her chest and out into the open.

'I see. I don't believe that you ever truly meant to hurt anyone Ms Queen and I agree with Mr Potter that you must have some form of training to learn to control this magic of yours. Although, you have done a remarkable job for someone with no help. I will need a few minutes to decide how you will get this training, for now you will wait here.' With that, Shacklebolt left, closely followed by Potter and Weasley, leaving her alone with a group of people that she didn't know.

Harry felt sorry for the girl that he had left sitting in the room as he followed Kingsley out into a smaller room which contained a desk and little else. Eliza had looked so small in the chair, revealing all her secrets that he couldn't help but feel a sort of fatherly protection towards her; she was only two years older than Lily.

'What are we going to do, Kingsley?' Harry asked the minister.

'I want to call McGonagall. I want her opinion as to where this girl would fit into Hogwarts if we were to send her there.' Harry pondered the words. He knew that she couldn't start as a first year as she had magic too advanced but he also knew that she had never used a wand which could mean she would struggle if put into her own year group.

Half an hour later, Professor McGonagall arrived in the small chamber, looking slightly flustered from her rush to get here as quickly as she could.

'Headmistress!' Kingsley exclaimed. 'As you know, we need your opinion on the education of the girl in the next room.' Harry noticed that he left the question open in the hopes as to not sway the headmistress's ideas.

'I honestly think that it is a bit of a conundrum. She is at the age that she should be a sixth year starting in September and we know she has the power for it but I also know that she has no experience with a wand. What I think she needs is a tutor for the summer so that she can transfer her skills over. If she is able to do that and decide on her NEWTs then I would have no objection to her joining our Sixth years. It would take a remarkable amount of studying though, throughout the summer and during the school year to catch up.' McGonagall said.

Kingsley looked thoughtful but eventually came to a decision. 'I think that is a good idea. All we need now is a tutor for her. She would probably need to stay with them as well as I assume that she has nowhere to live this summer.'

Harry and Ron looked at each other for a second before giving slight nods of their heads. 'Harry and I will look after her. We are all staying at the burrow for the rest of summer so she will be well looked after, and Hermione will love someone to impart all her knowledge onto.' Ron assured.

'We can also pay for all the equipment that she may need. In fact, we can go tomorrow as I think Albus wants a new broom for next year.' Harry added.

'Yes. I think your wife would be an excellent tutor. I am also aware that Lily has been doing well and as long as James doesn't rub off on her then I have no objection.' McGonagall decided.

Kingsley nodded in agreement and they all headed back into the hearing room where Eliza looked up at the noise. She saw the looks on their faces and instantly felt worried. Potter and Weasley both looked serious and there was a new woman that she had no seen before and thought that she had not been in the hearing room before.

'We have decided that as of September, you will be attending Hogwarts school of Witchcraft and Wizardry, provided that over the next month, you are able catch up your skills to the level of a sixth year. Are you willing to work for this?' the minister asked. Eliza felt all her fears disappear. She was going to be let go and she would have a chance at an education, it was more than she could ever have dared hope for.

'Yes! Of course! I will work very hard.' Eliza assured, bursting with happiness, not caring about the amount of work she would have to do.

'Very well then. You will be tutored and live with the Weasley and Potter families until you are able to join the school in the autumn. Dismissed.' The minister declared before leaving through the door he had come through only moments before.

The next minute was just a flurry of red and black robes moving past her out the large black door, some giving her looks but most just seemed to forget that she was even there. After everyone had left, Potter and Weasley came to stand next to her, guiding her out of the hall as in her shocked state, she seemed barely capable of standing on her own.

'Thank you so much.' Eliza said. She was grateful beyond words and didn't know how to express her gratitude. She had been so sure that she would be sent to Azkaban that she had never even considered a life for herself that wasn't in a cell or on the run. 'I don't know how to thank you for this.'

'You just need to work hard. If you can get into Hogwarts this year then you will have a chance to have a life without all the fear you have been living with.' Potter said. Eliza nodded. She would do anything she could to get into the school, even though she knew it would take a lot of work. At least she had knowledge of magic; all she would have to do with wand skills was learn the words to go with the movements. It was learning things like potions which she knew would be hard.

'Eliza, I need to do some more work before I can go home so Ron will take you back to his home for now. I think my wife is there along with the children so you can meet them. We will be going to the burrow at the end of the week so I want you to get used to some of us first as I know that it will be a little overwhelming for you.' Potter said.

'Okay, thank you again Mr Potter.' Eliza said.

'Harry, please. You are going to be living with us after all.' With that, he walked off back in the direction of his office and Weasley led her back towards the lifts that would allow them to leave. They were joined in the lift by more of the paper aeroplanes and the witch that they had seen on the first trip.

'Hello again, dear. How was your visit?' She asked. She looked slightly more dishevelled than last time as her hair was coming out of her neat bun and she was carrying a precarious stack of papers that looked like they would be lost any minute.

'It was really good.' Eliza said truthfully. She was still ecstatic from the news that she was being let go. The woman smiled at her words and got off at the next stop, carefully stepping around the flurry of people with her stack of paper which must have been enchanted to stay still. The lift came to a stop and Ron (as she had been told to call him) opened the grate and they stepped out into the huge hallway with the green fires that they had arrived in. Ron led her towards one of the fires and they joined a queue of people waiting to use it. Eliza watched in fascination as the people stepped into the flames, said something and a second later they were gone. Eventually, she worked out that they were saying where they wanted to go and that they were then taken there by the fire somehow.

When it was their turn, Ron guided her into the fireplace which was easily large enough for the two of them. He told her to keep her arms in and close her eyes and he then said his address and Eliza felt a funny feeling pulling at her. They flew through the chimney and Eliza banged herself several times against the sides of the flues that they were travelling along at remarkable speeds.

They hit the floor of another fireplace and Eliza coughed up the soot that had made its way into her throat on their journey. Once again she had to brace herself against her knees to regain her bearings as her knees felt weak from the unfamiliar mode of travel. When she finally managed to stand up, she was greeted by five people who were looking at her with surprise decorating their young faces.


	3. A New Home

Hey, so I know that everybody hates me and that I am a horrible person so I will go hide in a corner while you read this new chapter but hey! New Chapter! Thank you to **LittleMissBookwormBrainiac **who kick started this new life for the story. I love you all

Chapter 3

Eliza shifted nervously under the gazes of the five teenagers that stared at her in shock. Ron moved out of the fireplace, pulling her with him and into a large living room decorated with family photos of the people in the room and others that she didn't recognise. There was a mat at the edge of the fireplace and she hesitantly wiped her feet on it, not wanting to move soot on to the cream carpet that seemed to be so clean. Ron let go of her arm as he plunked himself down on one of the three sofas along the edge of the room around a low glass coffee table with a large purple vase of lilies on it as well as haphazardly placed cup mats in different patterns.

'Eliza, these are my children, niece and nephews, Rose, Hugo, Lily, Albus and James. Kids, this is Eliza Queen, she will be staying with us for the summer before starting Hogwarts in the autumn.' Ron said, pointing to each teenager in turn. Rose had fiery red hair, as did her brother Hugo and Lily. Albus and James both had messy black hair that stuck up in multiple directions as if it had not been combed in years. They all watched her curiously but with no malice but Eliza thought that this would change once they found out how she had come to live with them.

'It's nice to meet you.' Lily said. Eliza guessed that she was a year or two younger than her and the same age as Hugo who stood next to her. Eliza smiled politely and nodded in response.

Two women came into the room to see what the commotion was about and Eliza knew one to be Hermione Weasley from her pictures in the wizarding newspapers and the other to be Ginny Potter.

'Hello, dear.' Ron said, standing up to kiss his wife on the cheek. 'This is Eliza Queen. She is going to be staying with Harry until we all go to the burrow this weekend.' Hermione glanced over at her before returning her gaze to her husband.

'Why don't you come and help me and Ginny with the lunch and let the kids spend some time with Eliza.' Hermione said. Eliza hadn't been around many people in the past five years but she recognised that Hermione wanted to talk to her husband in private. 'We will just be in the kitchen. It is nice to meet you, Eliza.' Ron, Hermione and Ginny left through the door they had come through and Eliza was left with the five teenagers.

She turned back and carefully sat on the sofa that Ron had just vacated and the others all joined her in the motion. They sat in an uncomfortable silence for a few minutes before Eliza decided that talking would be better, despite her desire to avoid any personal conversations.

'So, do you all go to Hogwarts?' She asked. Lily jolted at her voice, she had obviously been thinking hard about something.

'Yes. Al and I are starting our sixth year, James his seventh and Lily and Hugo are going into their fourth year.' Rose said in an attempt to dissipate the silence.

'What year will you be starting in?' Lily asked with a kind and gentle voice.

'I think Harry said sixth year.' Eliza replied, curious that she would be in the same year as two of this family.

'What school did you go to before Hogwarts?' Albus asked, becoming involved in the conversation. Eliza considered lying for a minute but decided that they would find out eventually anyway as she was to live with them and Ron and Harry would probably say something later on.

'Actually, I have never been to school. I was taught by my parents when I was young because they were wizards and then things happened so I never had the chance.' Eliza decided that she wanted to make the most out of her life now that she had been given a second chance and that she wouldn't make friends if she lied.

'What things?' Hugo piped up. Eliza noticed Rose turn to glare at him for his lack of tact but Eliza didn't mind. She had already told her story twice in the last few hours to hundreds of people. Five more knowing wouldn't hurt her now.

'I didn't have great control of my magic when I was young and my parents died from an outburst I had.' Eliza felt the familiar guilt sweep over her and she forced it down inside her. She wouldn't allow herself to cry. She hadn't done so since she was twelve and had no intention of ever doing so again. She hated the feeling that came with it, of being weak, of being vulnerable and it was something that would allow her self-pity and she feared she would never come out of it if she ever allowed herself the chance to feel it again.

The five had mixed looks from horror to pity, none of which she wanted. She knew that they wouldn't accept it readily but she was prepared to work for some form of friendship with these people, even if it took weeks or months.

'It was accidental and I was taken to the ministry for it. They decided that I would go to Hogwarts and not Azkaban as long as I could work to get up my knowledge of magic in time.' Eliza continued.

Rose was the first to work herself out of her shock. 'How are you going to learn five years of work in one month?' She asked, incredulous.

'I am able to do some magic without a wand so I can transfer those skills relatively easily. It will be potions things like that that will be hard. Ron said that his wife would be able to help me.'

All five nodded in agreement, getting over her statement and accepting that fact that it had been an accident. Eliza was overjoyed by the readiness in which they dismissed the greatest mistake of her life, as though she hadn't done anything wrong. It hurt her to imagine that she could have had this for the past five years if only she had spoken out when she was eleven. If only she hadn't been an idiot who ran away from her problems.

'Mum will just love someone to teach. She might even ignore the need for me to have extra tuition over the holidays.' Rose laughed. The other all smiled in agreement and Eliza knew that they had all been on the receiving end of Hermione's teaching. Eliza felt a sudden need to know more about these kind people who had taken her into their home without question and about the place that she had thought she would never attend.

'So, what is Hogwarts like?' She asked curiously.

'Oh, it's wonderful. You get to learn all these really cool things like how to make potions and how to turn objects into animals and there is quidditch although I am not very good at it but I love to watch it.' Lily burst out in one breath.

'Calm down, Lily. You will faint again.' James said. His statement made Eliza wonder when the girl had fainted before but she would save those questions for another time.

'Oh, I remember quidditch. My parents were wizards but I never got to see a match because they never spoke about the wizarding world. They had muggle jobs and I only ever went to Diagon Alley once in my life when I was seven.' Eliza told them, comfortable in talking about her memories when they weren't about death and misery.

'Never seen a quidditch match?' Albus and James shouted simultaneously as though it was a great crime. 'How did you live?' Albus continued.

'I guess you guys will have to show me at some point.' Eliza suggested, hopeful that her new friends would all her to accompany them the next time they went to see one.

'Of course.' Rose said, as though the situation was never in doubt. 'Aunt Ginny used to play for the Holyhead Harpies before she had James and we all went to see the Quidditch World Cup finals a few years back, it was completely awesome. Mum used to date Viktor Krum and he showed us the Bulgarian team.'

'Who is Viktor Krum?' Eliza wondered.

'Only one of the best seekers ever! We are going to have to educate you on Quidditch more than school, obviously!' Albus enthused. Eliza smiled indulgently at their open enthusiasm for the sport and wondered if in her future she would be just as involved in these events as they obviously were.

They continued to talk about Quidditch until Ron, Hermione and Ginny all came back from their talk in the kitchen, announcing that dinner was ready. All the people around Eliza immediately jumped up and ran into the adjoining room but she lagged behind, wondering if she was welcome to join them or if her presence was unwanted. Hermione and Ginny had not looked particularly pleased when she rocked up with Ron that afternoon and she doubted that they would take kindly to her sitting at their dining table.

'Eliza, are you coming?' Ron asked from the doorway. Eliza looked up from the floor uncertainly, was he suggesting that she was meant to come or not? 'Eliza, please come and eat with us. You need feeding up I think and besides we haven't eaten since the soup in the forest and that was hours ago.'

Eliza smiled slightly and followed Ron into the spacious kitchen with a huge wooden table that showed that they often hosted more than just their immediate family. There were three places set that weren't occupied, two near Ginny and Hermione and one at the end next to Rose, which Eliza made a quick beeline for. She assumed that the remaining place was for Harry who she thought shouldn't be too much longer now, or at least she hoped, it would be nice to have another adult present who was on her side.

There was easy talk for most of the meal as everyone discussed their days which mostly consisted of gardening, stray gnomes and a rebellious game of quidditch with the old brooms in the fields behind the house. Harry returned as everyone was about half way through their meals looking tired and stressed but relieved to be back home. He stopped to kiss Ginny chastely as he walked over to his seat with a smile in Eliza direction which she was sure was meant to be reassuring.

'How was work?' Ginny asked as Harry sat down.

'Good, McGonagall gave us the lists for supplies for everything the kids will need for next year because she knows that we need to get everything for Eliza anyway. She has also suggested a list of everything she will need to learn for next year and she suggests first narrowing everything down to what she wishes to study in September to make the work load less. Also, she will need things like robes and cauldrons and maybe a pet of some sort. Do you like animals Eliza?' Harry rattled off.

'Er, yeah I guess. I don't have any idea of how to look after one though.' Eliza replied. She had always wanted an animal when she was young but her parents had been allergic to cats and rodents and they thought owls reminded them of the wizarding world that they wanted no part in.

'Okay, well we can look into it when we go to diagon alley. Actually, Ginny, I was planning on taking the trip tomorrow if everybody is free?' Harry asked.

'I see no problem with that, we best go early so we can get the shopping done before the crowds.' Ginny replied. 'Who else is coming?'

'Ron and I will come, may as well get their school supplies early.' Hermione said. 'Do you kids want to come?' There was a chorus of 'yes' and 'yeah'.

'Dad, can we look at the broomsticks?' Albus asked.

'Yeah, we need to get you a new one if you want to be on the team after you broke the last one.'

'You have a quidditch team at Hogwarts? Do you play other schools?' Eliza asked, curious as she had only ever heard of one wizarding school in the country.

'No, we have four teams and we all play each other for the quidditch cup.' Rose answered as though Eliza had grown another head.

'Oh, okay. Do you just split up the people evenly or is it on talent?' She asked.

'No, we play for our houses.' Rose replied.

'Houses?'

'You don't know about the houses?' Harry asked.

'No, what are you talking about?' Eliza asked, confused as to what they meant.

'Oh, I am sorry we assumed because your parents were magical that you would know more about the wizarding world.' Harry said. Eliza felt uncomfortable because of course they had no idea that if she ever mentioned the word magic when she was little, her parents would get angry, it was the only time they ever shouted at her.

'No, they didn't like talking about this world.' Eliza said.

'Okay, well when you go to Hogwarts, you are sorted into a house which is like your extended family, you live, eat and have classes with those in your house. There are four houses, Gryffindor which is or the brave, Hufflepuff for the kind, Ravenclaw for the clever and Slytherin for the cunning. I was in Gryffindor when I was at school, along with Ginny, Hermione and Ron.' Harry explained. Eliza thought it sounded strange, she understood having houses to make living arrangements and everything easier but what if you were more than just one of those qualities?

'Me, Albus and Rose are all in Gryffindor as well.' James said, his chest puffing out slightly with pride. Eliza was starting to see a pattern here and wondered what would happen if she wasn't a Gryffindor, Would they throw her out?

'I am in Ravenclaw.' Lily spoke up. 'And Hugo is in Hufflepuff. So don't worry about them lot and their Gryffindor pride, there are other houses too you know.' Lily said exasperated by her family.

'Yeah, it doesn't actually matter to us which house you are in, my boyfriend, Scorpius, is in Slytherin and I love him anyway. Even if Gryffindor is obviously the best.' Rose said. Eliza smiled at the thought of Rose with a boyfriend, she imagined he would be kept on his toes by her boisterous nature.

'Yes, anyway, we will get you everything you need when we go tomorrow but for now, Lily and Rose, go get the spare mattress and put it in your room so Eliza has somewhere to sleep. Boys, clear the table and Ron and Harry, you can wash up while Hermione and I go find us some popcorn so we can watch the new film on Harry's 'Muggle Box'.' Ginny said and clapped her hands to get everyone moving.

Eliza laughed as she followed Rose and Lily up the stairs as she heard Harry say, 'It's called a television, Ginny.'


	4. What to Choose?

Chapter 4

Rose and Lily led Eliza up the stairs and into a corridor lined with closed doors. They led her passed two before Lily pointed out the 'Girl's Bathroom' and then to the end with the door that said 'Lily's Room'. The trio stepped inside and Eliza examined her surroundings of off white walls, a four poster bed that dominated the room with an airy canopy and the large desk that had piles of heavy books and parchment scattered everywhere as well as a dark ink satin to the left corner.

'This is my room,' Lily explained, 'but Rose always stays in here when they come to stay because James wont share so Albus and Hugo have to share the spare room. There isn't a lot of room but Rose and I can share the bed, it's plenty big enough and you can have the spare mattress. Is that okay?'

'Yeah, sounds good to me. I lived on the forest floor for years while I was on the run before I eventually figured out how to conjure up objects. Couldn't steal one because when I was eleven I was a bit small and I had no idea how to shrink things, by the time I learnt that particular skill, I had stopped robbing muggle stores.' Eliza rambled on before she realised what she had been telling the two girls who stood by the bed, open mouthed before Rose abruptly shook herself.

'Well, I have slept on the mattress many times, and on the floor when Uncle George set fire to my bed with some sort of lasting spell. It didn't spread anywhere but let's just say that my room was like a furnace for at least a week.' Lily giggled from under the bed where she seemed to be pulling out a duvet and pillows before tugging out the mattress that had been hidden there.

Eliza appreciated that they hadn't pried into her life that had been so different only a few hours ago. She couldn't believe that last night she had been taking out her tent from her enchanted bag which was able to hold more than it seemed and eating a cooked rabbit with some random carrots that she had stolen from an old lady's garden on her last trip into town. As strange as it may seem, robbing from houses was a lot easier than from the shops.

Rose decided to get rid of the silence that had begun to drape itself awkwardly over them and went over to Lily's desk and grabbed a pile to text books which she then dumped onto Lily's bed.

'Uncle Harry said that you should decide which subjects you want to take for NEWTs in September so that we can get you as up to speed as possible over the summer. These are some of the subjects that are available at Hogwarts but we should make a list so that you can choose. Don't worry; we will help as much as we can and if things are still undecided by morning then Mum would probably jump at the chance to help.' Rose told Eliza who nodded along, pretending not to be as nervous as she felt. Dementors seemed like nothing compared to the prospect of school, classes and other teenagers all at the same time.

'Yeah, great idea, Rose. I will start the list.' Lily piped up and rushed over to her desk to retrieve the parchment and a quill. 'Mum made Dad go and buy me never ending quills at Christmas because I was always spilling ink everywhere as you can probably see. Eliza had noticed the ink stain on the desk before but as she looked around the room, she noticed another dark patch partially covering the white carpet behind the door, mostly concealed by a strategically placed collection of stuffed cat toys.

The three, well Rose and Lily while Eliza watched on, made a list of the possible subjects for Eliza to learn when she started school in the autumn.

_Hogwarts Classes_

_Charms_

_Defence Against the Dark Arts_

_Transfiguration _

_Herbology_

_Potions_

_Divination_

_Muggle Studies_

_History of Magic_

_Care of Magical Creatures_

_Astronomy_

_Arithmancy_

_Ancient Runes_

_Alchemy_

'Well, at the ministry, I was told that it would be better to learn things that directly involve magic because I can do the spells, I merely need to learn to channel things into my wand which may make it easier to learn the facts.' Eliza explained to the girls. Personally she thought that there was no way she would manage even that but it would be stupid of her to turn down the chance of getting an education when she had been denied for so long for whatever reason. 'Also, I never learnt anything from my parents about magic, they distanced themselves after the War, which by the way I read about in a newspaper so I do know some things about the wizarding world, so I only know things that are taught in muggle primary schools.'

'What do you learn there?' Lily asked. Oh yeah, Eliza thought, they were just as clueless about the muggle world as she was with theirs.

'Basic maths and literacy mostly, some history but I doubt that would come in helpful here.'

'Well, at least you know how to read and write then!' Rose exclaimed. Eliza brushed off the comment, of course she knew how to read and write; she wasn't that oblivious!

'Okay, so I would probably say that Ancient Runes, Arithmancy, Astronomy, Divination and History of Magic are out then.' Lily said and carefully crossed them off her list. Eliza wasn't too upset over those, although Ancient Runes did sound like a cool thing to know.

'Agreed.' Eliza confirmed. 'How many subjects should I be taking?'

'Well, I think that it doesn't matter too much. I am pretty sure that Aunt Hermione took 7 but that is a lot and Uncle Ron and Dad never took theirs but I think they started out doing 5?' Lily said cautiously, looking to Rose for confirmation.

'Yeah, I think that is right but who knows?' Rose laughed. 'You could probably get away with doing 4 or more, maybe even three but try for four over the summer and we can see what Mum says and then we could ask Professor McGonagall.'

'Okay, 4 sounds okay, better than 7 at any rate.' Eliza said, relieved that it wasn't as many as she had feared. 'I don't know which ones I want to choose though.' The words on the list meant nothing to her; they could have involved pulling rabbit rom top hats for all she knew. Transfiguration sounded like it could be used to turn frogs into princes like in the fairy tales although she doubted that was something that was on the curriculum.

'Well, you said that you can do magic without a wand, right? Which you are so going to have to teach me because that is absolutely awesome, but that means that Transfiguration, Charms and DADA should be easier for you to learn as you will just need to learn the theory stuff, mostly.' Lily reasoned. She leant over and placed a star against those subjects on the list.

'You would probably know enough about Muggle Studies if that was something you wanted to do? It sounds horribly boring and maybe won't get you a job after school but at least you wouldn't have to learn much for it.' Rose suggested. Eliza considered the idea of learning about how wizards see the muggle world that she was half a part of. She doubted that she would learn much but Rose was right, she needed to learn subjects she would be able to catch up on quickly and she had enough experience with the muggle world that she could easily learn odd facts that she didn't know and spend more time on the harder subjects.

'Yeah, I agree. I will take that as my fourth subject. Do you think that I need another or is that enough?' Eliza asked.

'I think if you take Muggle Studies then you can fit in another subject which would bring you up to a normal amount. Maybe something a little harder? You won't need to spend any time on Muggle Studies and you are fairly adept at the spells for the other subjects which is the part which would take longer to learn than the theory side. So you could possibly do something like Potions or Herbology? Our parents were friends with Professor Longbottom when they were all at Hogwarts together so maybe you could ask him for help if you wanted to do Herbology?' Lily explained. Eliza wondered if she would be comfortable having to meet another person who would be responsible for her future so soon after having been thrust into the Ministry and met with the Minister and the Headmistress.

No, she told herself, you are going to go to a school with hundreds of students and teachers. You need to get used to it or you are wasting this chance. Another voice tried to suggest that after what she did to her parents that she didn't deserve this chance, she deserved to still be cowering in the cold woods, afraid of the people hunting her but she shit the voice down. She had learnt to after she had been woken up to nightmare after nightmare when she was young and on the run.

'Herbology sound like it would be fun. It is plants, yes?' Eliza enquired. She had sometimes managed to steal books from muggle and wizard libraries alike when she was younger and able to avoid detection more easily. A few had mentioned Herbology when discussing new treatments for ailments in some wizarding hospital or another.

'Yeah, I personally hated it but then again Professor Longbottom is great so I am sure you will have fun if you don't mind the plants trying to either eat you or poison you.' Rose shuddered as if recalling a bad experience while Eliza glanced over at Lily who was failing to cover a smirk. Eliza vowed to remember to ask for the story when they had more time. They still had to get at least some sleep tonight for visiting Diagon Alley tomorrow where she would have to start accepting that this was her life now. I seemed surreal at the moment that only that morning she had been freezing in the woods and now she was talking about what school subjects she would be taking in just over a month. Maybe in the morning everything would fall into place and it would feel as if the last five years were just one long nightmare that she was only now waking from.

Little did she know that Hogwarts would present more dangers than her quiet life in the middle of the forest ever cold have.

* * *

**AN: Okay so it is quite short, maybe 700/800 words less than normal but I really wanted to get this out cause it has been a while hasn't it? *hides in a corner***

**But in all honesty, it felt right to end it here and next chapter should come out before the end of the month before we go back to school in September (my last year!). They will be taking a trip to Diagon Alley and we will see how Eliza copes with her first real interaction in a wizarding area.**


End file.
